1. Field of the Invention
This invention broadly relates to a device for loading shells into barrels of a shotgun, and specifically concerns a reloading device worn on the back of the hand and adapted to release the shells into the barrels as the device is rocked relative to the shotgun.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Hunters using single barrel and double barrel shotguns are often faced with the problem of rapidly reloading the gun after initial shots are fired. Oftentimes, a number of shells are carried in the pockets of the hunter's clothing or in a pouch worn over the clothing, and to reload the gun the user must reach into the pouch or pocket to grasp a shell, visually observe the shell to determine the nose or forward end of the same, and then place the shell within the barrel by grasping appropriate portions of the base of the shell in order to guide the nose of the shell into the barrel.
As can be appreciated, a substantial amount of time may be lost at inopportune moments while fumbling with loose shells and adjusting the grip in order to insert the nose end of the shell into the barrel. Consequently, the likelihood of a successful hunting trip may be substantially diminished. Moreover, such problems are compounded during cold weather when it is necessary to wear gloves or mittens on the hands.
In the past, others have attempted to solve the foregoing problems by provision of a dispenser that is carried on the body and releases individual shells in seriatim fashion. My attention has been called to the following patents: U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,685,600, 4,657,132, 4,583,659, 4,381,845 and 710,324. For the most part, such devices are unsatisfactory because the shells must be grasped by the fingers once dispensed and then guided into the barrel of the gun. Moreover, the dispensing operation must be repeated if both barrels of a double barrel shotgun are to be reloaded.
A device for loading cartridges directly into a cartridge chamber of a revolver is disclosed in U.S. Pat No. 2,592,415 and includes a plurality of spring clips which grasp the sides of the cartridge. However, the device illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 2,592,415 is grasped by the fingers during loading of the cartridges and should be held in an upright orientation since the clip engages the cartridge along a substantial portion of its length and thus the cartridges should preferably be near a vertical orientation during loading in order to smoothly drop into the chamber therebelow if hand manipulation of each cartridge is to be avoided. Furthermore, the loading device described in U.S. Pat. No. 2,592,415 is adapted to load only one cartridge at a time into the cylinder of the revolver.